CLINICAL PRACTICE: Psychological treatments Cognitive

behavioural strategies (CBS)are circumscribed psychological skills that can be incorporated into general prac-tice,1 and need to be distinguished from cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), a comprehensive therapeutic approach which requires more intensive training.2 The CBS outlined in this article can be integrated with other behavioural3 and structured problem solving approaches.4 Why CBS? There are a number of good reasons to encourage the use of CBS in the general practice setting. The most compelling argument is that their use is consistent with the direction of evidence based med-icine. The American Psychological Association has developed criteria for the identification of ‘empirically supported treatments’, the majority of which can be categorised as cognitive behavioural in nature.5 Numerous studies have demon-strated the efficacy of CBS for common mental disorders such as depression and anxiety in nonprimary care settings.6 Few studies of the efficacy of CBS have been conducted in the general prac-tice setting.7 However, there are data suggesting that their use by general prac-titioners for a range of common mental disorders is more effective than usual clinical care, at least in the short term.8 However, this improvement appears to be dependent on GPs having the necessary skills to implement CBS. Clearly, further research on the effectiveness of CBS in the general practice setting is necessary.9 A current incentive for GPs to incor-porate CBS into their repertoire of clinical skills, is that these skills are recognised and supported by a new Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) ite